Kelp is a common ocean plant that has been used in eastern dishes and herbal remedies for hundreds of years. It is now becoming all the rage in western diets as well, and for good reason. Kelp is full of vitamins, nutrients, and has some medicinal properties as well.
Kelp supplements can be taken almost as a vitamin themselves. This is particularly good for women, because it contains iron, calcium, and potassium. These are typical vitamins and minerals that women need more of.
Because kelp grows in the ocean, it has a high salt concentration. In fact, some cooks prefer to use it rather than salt to season certain soups, salads, and other foods. But the single biggest benefit of kelp to the human body is iodine. kelp is a huge, organic source of iodine, and it is this iodine that allows for proper endocrine system function.
Iodine works within the body, primarily by helping the thyroid create two different hormones, triiodothyronine and thyroxine. These two compounds are needed for proper health. Iodine is necessary for proper brain development in children, to prevent disease such as goiter, and regulating metabolism to ensure calories are properly burned by the body. In fact, a lack of iodine can result in large amounts of weight gain!
Kelp is a great source of nutrients and iodine, and works better for most people in terms of absorption than iodized salt does. As a rule, absorption of nutrients from natural sources as opposed to chemical or artificial sources (enriched breads, pill based vitamins, fortified foods, etc) is superior. Iodine has a more complete and steady blood stream absorption rate when it is ingested via an organic source like kelp, and rare allergic reactions to iodine are almost non-existent when iodine is taken in via natural sources.
Kelp is also great for healthy nails and many natural remedies specialists recommend it for healthy hair growth. One type of kelp called Laminaria has some lab studies that demonstrate it lowers the risk of breast cancer, rheumatoid arthritis, and will decrease obesity in some people. Some people have used to to increase circulation and help people who experience chronic low body temp.
Kelp can also aid the pancreas and the prostate gland in men. It can help rebuild cell membranes, improve the digestive tract, and can help remove dangerous radiation from the body. In fact, the proper amount of iodine is necessary for a woman to take in order to have a healthy pregnancy and avoid and unwanted abortion. Kelp can be just the herb for this particular job.
Because of the iodine that kelp contains, eating it may help improve your immune system. Iodine itself is a natural antibiotic, and in the case of an oral or throat infection, sipping a kelp based tea can have the effect of killing the infection. Many herbalists will recommend a person drink kelp tea to cure strep throat. The easiest way to do this is to add a gelcap of kelp to tea, make sure it dissolves, and then slowly sip it. The iodine in the tea will kill bacteria on contact in the mouth and the throat.
Kelp can be of benefit for those who want to lose weight. Between the iodine helping to achieve an optimum metabolism, and the diuretic effects of kelp itself, you can help yourself achieve your weight loss goals.
But like all good things, kelp can be overdone. Iodine toxicity does exist, and can really throw your body out of whack. So please speak with a medical or herbal professional before you start adding kelp to your diet.
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